Electric switch.



C. D. PLATT.I

ELECTRICSWITCH. l 'y 'APPLICATION FILED APR. 2o, Isps. l1,21 8,890. Y Patented Mar. 13,1917

E25 l ,5 m

` button type and has for soule CLARENCE n. PLATT, or nnInGEPonT, CONNECTICUT.

ELECTRTC svvrroia.`

Specification of Letters Patfnrit.` P3, gutted lIgLl', 13, 1791"?,r

` Application filed 1p1-il 20, 1916. Serial No. 92326.

To all @Mmm it may concern E); it known that l. Cnnninon l). ligar'r, a eitizen of the United States of Auierura, re-

siding at `Bridgeport, (onncw'lieunhave in' Venteda new and usellll llleetrie Switch, of

whit-h the yfollowingy is `a `sperilieation.

Mv present invention` has referente partieularly to switvhes of the its ohjei'ts to plovdea switi-h of eonpiurat'irely light and'inexlierisive eonstriu-tion. liavlng a. (puel: avtion and high' entrent carrying'tapan-ity.

`A sperial objet-t in to reduce tl'ul shoifli of the switfh lnovelnellts.

l ln the al'ioun)lishnunt of ihe'foreffoing' and other objet-ts, as will later Malindi'. l oni ploy in taunhination a swinging contact n'laltiiig lever and a sivilin'innn switch o'pirat inn' lever with n spring eoi'uiel'tion between. said` level-sand interpuso in the path of movement olfsaiil levers toward eurfh other.y a stop or limitingV device arranged to deterininethe final strnipinp` point of the two levers andto ('ause the movement of one leveifto cushion the l'novelnent of the other lever. These stops may lle and preferably are earried hy brui-.het in which the two levers arel mounted.

'Another feature of the invention is the bowing or transversearehingoii the operating leverttostrengthen the saine and a still further feature is a novel forni of ofn'ineetion between the push-biilttons and the operating lever.I I l Various other `featureswill appear as the speeifeation proreeds.

ln the accompanying drawingI l have illustrated tl'ieiinvention einlmdied in a praeti eal` and yn'L-ferred forin hut it ywill he filmini-stood that changes and inodilimitions inav he inadowithout departing from the tru'e spirit and scope of the invention.

ln this drawing:

Figure 1 is a tinifplanview of tl'ie invention .embodied in `al wall type switch, the oover and supporting yoke beingl omitted for the-sake Aof elearness. l i y "Fig: 2 a side view .of the switch meehafnism detached from the hase therefor.

Fig'. 3 is a longitudinal seetional. view of the switch taken silhstantially on the plane of the line of Fig. l.

Fig. 4L is a dropv perspective viewof `the several `parts ofthe switch mechanism.

ln the form of th .l switch herein illus-i.

trated the switch parts are all mounted on illed push a hollow hase- Zof insulating inaterial de-y signed to he lnolintedvin a `wall or elsewhere hy means of' 'a "yoke 8 to which the switch hase is seeured h v screws 9.

Mounted within the hollow switehvbase' are the relativel stationary switch contacts l0. two' only of sneh contacts being shown. l

r[he main parte of the switeh rneehanisin are sulrl'nirted' hv :l .liligleI bracket l1. of aroherl struc-,ture kand comprising spaced apart sides 12 Conneeted hv a snlostant'ially'f llat top 1.3, the sides having outstanding at-I laelunent lugs 'l-flat their bases hy vvhell the" i hrm-liet sewn-ed in place, as by rneans'of the` si'frews 1 5 passed u p tl'irmigh the bottom ofthe has@ as `ind :ated 1n Fig. l. i

'The lnaeket 11 supports a swinging Contant making` lever lG and a rocking operatingr lever '17'.

The contant making lever is illustrated a substantially U=shaped nieinher having parallel side portions 18 eonneeted at'the )ottoni and provided at`tl'1e11'uppe1 ends with frutstginding lugs 19 plvotally engaging in sockets 20 'provided in the `opposite sides of the arched lnaoket. These pivot are ineferally inade as shown,` as plain straight sided nienihers, free of protuheranees `or en `lar-gementsso that if necessary the sides of the `Ushaped Contact can he vpinched"to eether yso that these lugs will pass between the sides of the `arched supporting.",hralfzet and then spring: outwardly throughthe hear ing sockets provided therefor.

rlhe. rocking operating lever is howed transversely as indieated so as to extend up into the arch of the supporting lil-:loket .and is provided with pivot lugs also preferably `straight sided as indifatedy at .21

to` engage in the hearing' sockets 2&2 provided in the sides of 'the ln'aeltet. i

The switch operating lever has oppositely entendi o' .operating `arms 23-,-24 entendingl to opposite sides of the pivotal Center there of1 these arlne being` usually benty downward from the plane of the highest point of the arch oftsaid lever and `substantiallyfiat or bowed slightly upward on top `as indicated at 25 in Fig. 4. Thisitransverse how or l arch imparted to the lolierating. arms gives them stiffness and rigidity and prevents them from 'becoming bent 'during operation ofthe switch. i

A snap aet'ion ofthe partsvis securedby eonntaiting a spring 26 between a loop?? on the lower end of the Contact making lever` y and-a loop 28 on the arch ofv the operating lever, this spring servmg, as the operat:

ing lever is rocked, toy carry the upper end of the spring past the dead center to swing the contact makin lever over with a quick snap movement. his y'movement of the two levers is provided for in the illustration by looping the sides of the contact making f lever as indicated at 29 so as-to pass around -making lever to the left;

The movement of the operating and contact making levers is limited in my present invention by stops interposed in the path of movement of these two levers toward each other, these stops taking the formV in the present disclosure of inturned oppositely disposed lugs 32 carried by the sides of the `arched bracket at the opposite ends thereof and adapted to be engaged underneath by the sides of the upwardly swinging contact making lever and on top by the lugs 33 outstanding from the opposite edges of the switch operating lever. v Y

The switch operating and contact making levers engage the opposite sides of the stop lugs practically simultaneously and so serve in effect the one to cushion the blow of the other. This b rings the parts to a quick stop with but slight shock to any of the parts and enables the making of the parts relatively light. Another advantageous feature ofithis structure is that the stop lugs. 4are located at a suilicient distance from the pivot centers of the two levers to bring the levers to a stop without undue shock to any of the parts. In the switch illustrated the lugs 3.3 on the operating lever which engage the stop lugs on the bracket extend downwardly slightly belowl the plane of the relatively Hat top -oii' the operating arms 23-24, this giving the transversely arched configuration referred to.

The connection between the operating push-.buttons and switch operating lever is vof novel construction and is :made by providing the shank 34 of each button with a notch 35 in the lower edge thereof opening pushbuttons 'to the operating lever itY is merely necessary to slip the notched edge of the push-button shank over the `notched edge of the operating arm until the pivot bar 39 engages in the pivot opening 3G'as indicated at the left in F ig. el and then to turn the push-button Aupward so that the end portion of the shank 34 fits within the slot 38 as indicated at the left in Fig. 3. Aside from the ease of assemblage this connection has the advantage of bracing the shank of the push-button against lateral movement with respect to the working ot' the operating lever.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the switch of my invention is quick and powerful in' itsaction and consists ot but few parts of simple and inexpensive construction.Y y

What I claim is:

1. In a switch of the character described, the combination. with a freely swinging contact making lever, a freely swinging operating lever and a spring-connection between said levers tending to swing the end portions of said levers together, of stop `means at one side of the point oi support of the levers interposed in the path of movement of said levers toward each other and engaged on opposite sides by said levers to fix the .stopping point of both levers whereby the force 'of impact of one lever ,against said stop means will be 'opposedby the torce of impact of the other lever and means for actuating the operating lever against said stop means. s

2. In a switch of the character described, a supporting base, a switch operating lever pivoted on said base having outstanding operating arn'i's disposed flatwise with the greatest dimension thereof at right angles to the plane of movement of such arms, a pivoted contact making lever, a spring connection between said levers and means con- `nected with the relatively atwise disposed making lever and a spring connection -between the levers.

4. In a switch of the character described,

a base, a switch operating lever pivotally supported on said base and provided with outstanding operating arms disposed fiatf wise with the greatest dimension thereof at right angles to the plane of movement of such arms, push buttons connected with the end portions of said relatively Hat outstanding arms, stops disposed in the path of a supporting base, a switch operating,r lever pivotally mounted on said base and provided with operating arms disposed flatwise with the greatest dimension thereof at right angles to the plane of 'movement of such arms having outstanding,r stop lugs at the ends thereof, push buttons connected with the relatively lat operating arms substantially in line with. said outstanding stop lugs, stops disposed in the path of movement of said stop lugs on the operating arms and a contact makingr device connected with the switch (nier-ating lever.

.ln a switch of the character described, a supporting hase, a freely swinging operating lever pivotally mounted on said base and provided withA outstanding operating arms, push buttons connected with the end portions of said operating arms, stops disposed in the path of movement of the operating arins of the freely swinging operat ing lever and substantially in line with the points of connection of the push buttons therewith to thereby take the strain of pressure on the push buttons and afcontact making device connected with the operating lever.

7. In a puslrbntton switch7 the combination of an operating lever having a notch in the edge thereof and a slot therein substantially in line with the notch in the edge but separated therefrom by an intervening har and a push-button having a shank provided with a pivot opening therein for the interveningr har aforesaid and a notch ex tcndilngr from the edge of the shank into said pivot opel'iing,

CLARENCE D. PLATT.

It is hereby certified that in Lettore Patent No. ,218,890, granted March 13,

1917, upon the application of Clarence D. Platt, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, for an improvement iu Electric Switches, errors nppcnr in the printed'specieation requiring correction as follows; Page 2, line 1H), claim l, after the word "lever insert the words against smid stop means; sumo pago and claim, strike out lino 101 and that the said Letters Patent should bc reed with these corrections therein that thetsame may conform to tim record of the case in the Patent Oiice Signed and sealed this 3d day of Aprii, A. D., 1917.

[sneu] F. W. H. CLAY,

Cl. 175-293. Acting Commissioner of Patente. 

